Serenity Sphere

Mindfulness

Tina Spagnola, MSN, RN, NPD-BC, NE-BC

In this quarter’s edition of the SPN Serenity Sphere, I am pleased to concentrate on the theme of mindfulness. Dr. Nika Gueci, EdD, MA, who serves as the Executive Director at the Center for Mindfulness, Compassion and Resilience at Arizona State University, graciously conducted a pre-conference workshop on this subject at the SPN Annual Conference. It is therefore apt that we extend our focus on mindfulness in this issue.

Mindfulness is defined as the deliberate and conscious awareness of the present moment, characterized by an attentive but non-reactive state. While having its origins in Eastern philosophy and religion, mindfulness is predominantly practiced today to focus on the benefits.

Contrary to other forms of meditation that involve emptying the mind of thoughts, mindfulness involves active awareness and can be integrated seamlessly into daily activities. Various approaches to mindfulness practice exist; please refer to the resources provided at the end of this article to determine which method best suits your needs; there are many different ones available.  Mindfulness techniques need not require dedicated time blocks and can include practices such as walking or mindful eating. Additionally, numerous mobile applications are available to support mindfulness practice.

The advantages of incorporating mindfulness are numerous:

• Enhanced self-esteem, increased empathy, and heightened self-awareness.
• Reduction in stress levels, decreased burnout rates, alleviation of anxiety and depression symptoms, alongside improved sleep quality.
• Elevated resilience enabling more effective rebound from adversities combined with a reduction in negative thought patterns.

As noted during Donna Cardillo’s keynote at last week's SPN 34th Annual Conference: view self-care not as indulgence but rather as an act of self-respect. Allocate time for yourself for fostering acts such as practicing gratitude—as highlighted in our February serenity sphere—or engaging in mindfulness exercises.

Resources

https://mindfulnesscenter.asu.edu/resources

https://www.mindful.org/what-is-mindfulness/

https://www.healthline.com/health/mind-body/what-is-mindfulness#what-it-is

 References

Edison College of Nursing and Health Innovation. (n.d.). What is mindfulness? Center: Mindfulness, Compassion and Resilience. https://mindfulnesscenter.asu.edu/what-mindfulness

Edison College of Nursing and Health Innovation. (n.d.). Shareable resources.   

             https://mindfulnesscenter.asu.edu/resources

Psychology Today. (2024). Mindfulness. https://www.psychologytoday.com/u/basics/mindfulness